I have heard that you can negotiate with hospitals regrading medical bills. Say i offer to pay in cash, but...

Question

cannot afford full amount i owe... will they work with me? Would they lower the price if i pay cash?

my situation: my son just has to get 5 stitches. the entire bill for 5 freakin' stitches (no sedatives or anything extra) was $915.00. that is a crock of c**p, if you ask me. we do not have insurance, so it will be out of pocket. the bill says to pay in full by april 6th, 2008.

ok, yeah, right. cause i have $1,000 just lying around.

anyway, i have heard that they will turn me over to a collection agency if i pay $20 a month. could i pay a portion is cash and they "forgive" the rest?

what are my options?

Answer 1

Yes you can negotiate with the hospital.  Ask very nicely ( not with an attitude).  Tell them you do not have medical insurance and any bill payment will be coming out of your pocket, which is cash poor at the moment.  Most hospitals will cut the bill in half or close to it right away.  You can then generally negotiate a little further down.  You should then pay the bottom line cash price shortly there after. Paying just $20 mo. will not prevent them from turning you over to a collection agency.   You can also go online to see what Medicare will pay a hospital for a similar procedure and get closer to that amount.  You should be able to get it down to $400 or so.  They won't forgive "the rest", but they will reduce the bill.  Good luck (and remember to be firm but nice).

Answer 2

Yes, you can call the billing office and ask them to reprice to a cash price.